Road to the Future
by Kizmet
Summary: In the wake of GT's resolution Goten makes a decision about the direction of his life and asks Vegeta for assistance.
1. Prologue: Finding Direction

**Road to the Future**

**Chapter One: Finding Direction**

**Disclaimer: **Characters and premise are the property of Akira Toriyama, I'm just borrowing them for a bit of non-profit fun.

**Author's Notes: **This is a post-DB:GT story. The notion for this story has been banging around in my head for a while and now it's finally getting on paper. But I'm going to warn you up-front: I can't promise quick updates. It's just over two months until I get married and I'm in the middle of writing a thesis, selling my house and looking for a job, real life is quite hectic at the moment.

* * *

Vegeta opened the door of the Gravity Room and stared down at the boy huddled miserably on the door step. It had been a long time since he'd found one of the brats waiting for him, even his little princess had gone and turned into a teenager.

"Well?" Vegeta asked gruffly.

Goten jerked in surprise at Vegeta's voice. He stared up at the older Saiyan with red-rimmed eyes. "Teach me how to fight?" he requested.

"You know how to fight," Vegeta stated. "Your father taught you."

Goten flinched as if Vegeta had struck him. Then he stood up and met Vegeta's gaze with determination. "You know I only ever played at training," he said. "I never took it seriously. And when I got older, well, you know, girls. Dad had to force me to do any training at all. Then he found Uub and he didn't bother anymore."

"What's changed?" Vegeta had an idea of what had brought this on, but he wanted to know the exact form it had taken.

Goten's posture crumpled, his gaze dropped to the ground at Vegeta's feet, ashamed, grieving. "They took the Dragon Balls because we relied on them too much," he said softly. "No matter what happened we could always use them to fix it. And we did. That's why they took them away."

Vegeta waited silently.

"That's why they took my dad too, isn't it?" Goten continued. "We always knew that when something bad happened he'd take care of it."

"Dad always wanted us to train. Gohan, Trunks and I are supposed to have more potential than you or Dad, but we never worked to bring it out. Well, Trunks and I didn't and Gohan stopped trying a long time ago."

"I guess we just assumed that if anything happened we'd have time to train then." Goten said. The look in his eyes turned desperate. "But we didn't. Baby came and he took us down like dominos."

Vegeta's mouth twisted in displeasure at the reminder.

"He started with the weak link and worked his way up," Goten continued bitterly. "And then Super 17, there wasn't any warning or time to get stronger, he just took us all out like it was nothing, then Dad took care of him. When the evil dragons started hatching we left Dad to take care of them too, we didn't even bother to try. Dad was out saving the world and we just went about our lives like it was nothing. When it turned out that he did need help you were the only one of us who came through. The rest of us were just worthless baggage."

Vegeta watched expressionlessly as tears welled up in the young demi-Saiyan's eyes.

"Even back when we fought Buu Dad wanted Trunks and I to step up as Earth's protectors. We never did, we just kept depending on him to take care of everything. It's just like the Dragon Balls, we depended on them to be there, to fix things whenever anyone died. So they too the Dragon Balls away, they took Dad away."

"I wouldn't have allowed you or Trunks to fight Buu," Vegeta pointed out. "You were still children."

Goten straightened, it emphasized the fact that he was nearly a foot taller than Vegeta. "I'm not a child anymore," he said. "Gohan has his family and his job and he's already done a lot. Trunks helped Dad get the Black Star Dragon Balls and he's got Capsule Crop to run. Hell, even Pan was there trying to help Dad with the Black Star Dragon Balls and the evil Dragons. Pan's got a lot more attitude than she's got power or skill, but at least she tried. I'm tired of being useless Uncle Vegeta! Please?"

Vegeta considered Goten for several moments. There had been a time when he would have dismissed Goten's request out of hand; because a student would take time out of his own training, because he'd hated the idea of helping anyone else become stronger. Vegeta had gotten over his arrogance during the battle against Buu. Being the strongest just didn't matter the way it had before. He'd learned to be at peace with himself. He didn't need solitary victories to prove his strength anymore. It was more important to be certain that his family and by extension his adopted planet were protected.

There weren't many fighters worth mentioning left. Kakarrot was gone. The Namek was gone. Even Kuririn was gone and with Kuririn's death 18 had sunken into a depression and didn't want to do much of anything anymore, their daughter was the only one left who could reach her.

Vegeta realized that he was going to miss the occasional, almost friendly spars, that he and Kakarrot had indulged in after they'd saved the world from Buu. If he ever wanted another sparring partner worth fighting, he was going to have to train one of the brats.

Gohan, despite all his potential, would never be a proper warrior. He was forever trapped between his fear of his berserker nature and his reliance on the same. Getting Gohan to train properly would be nothing but a headache.

As for Trunks; Vegeta repressed the urge to smirk; Trunks had a Saiyan's pride. He wouldn't stand by while Goten got stronger than he was. It had been too long since he and Trunks had shared any common interests. But if he tried to force Trunks to train all he'd get would be whining about Capsule Corps even though Vegeta knew very well that his son got bored senseless within five minutes of getting to his desk and would generally end up playing hooky by noon. But if he told Trunks that he was training Goten, it would only be a matter of time until Trunks demanded to train as well.

"I won't tolerate any nonsense," Vegeta stated harshly. "If I think you're doing any less than your best, I won't bother to open the door before I boot you out of it. Understood?"

Goten nodded. "Yes sir!"

"Meet me here tomorrow at five." Vegeta gave Goten a piercing glare. "And I do mean in the morning, brat."


	2. Dinner at the Briefs'

**Road to the Future**

**Chapter Two: **Dinner at the Briefs'

**Author's Notes: **Well I went back and rewatched the end of GT to check some details... And found that I'd already made a few continuity errors and had some other errors planned that are pretty central to the story... Oopsie.

First: I forgot that Goku's last wish brought Kuririn back, I'm not sure how since his wish was for the damage done by the problems with the Dragon Balls to be fixed and Kuririn was killed before that all started. But regardless, Kuririn brought back in GT, but he stayed dead in this story.

Second: Vegeta, SSJ4 and Vegeta's tail. When Bulma uses the bluntz wave generator to give Vegeta the ability to reach SSJ4 his tail regrows. When he lacks the energy to maintain SSJ4 any longer his tail disappears as he reverts to his base state. It wasn't cut off again or anything, it just vanishes. This keeps Goku as the only one who can, or ever will be able to, ascend to SSJ4 at will. Whether the tail stayed or went wouldn't have made any difference to how GT played out: There weren't any Senzu beans lying around. Once both Vegeta and Goku had lost the energy to maintain SSJ4 there was no way for them to regain that energy short of taking a time out (which Omega Shenron wasn't likely to agree to).

I think the greatest fault of GT is pushing Goku over all the other characters, to the point where no one except Goku get to do much of consequence at all. So for this story, Vegeta's lack of a tail was the only reason he had no hope of getting to SSJ4 without Bulma's help. His tail didn't disappear after he reverted to his base-state and after everything is over he's left in the same situation Goku was in after the first time he ascended: Vegeta knows he's capable of attaining SSJ4, he just needs to train a bit more so that he can call on that form at will. More of me screwing with the rules of SSJ4 in the story (and SSJ3, but that's simply because I don't like SSJ3).

And just because I like Vegeta's DBZ hair better than his GT hair, the transformation to SSJ4 and back left his hair back at it's natural length. Not that it really matters, even with in the context of the story, just my personal preference.

* * *

.

Bulma chatted happily with her son while she put dinner on the table and waited for the rest of her family to assemble.

"Do you think Capsule Corp will get the defense contract?" she asked.

"Definitely," Trunks replied. "No one has materials that stand up to the sort of punishment our panels can take. But that General Ross is getting on my nerves. He keeps pestering me about how we generate blasts of the intensity we claim the panels fail at."

Bulma snickered. "He thinks he's found a revolutionary new weapon in addition to the best armor money can buy. Why don't you just_ show_ him how we test the panels?"

"I'm not telling him that you started working on those panels because you needed to child-proof the pantry against Goten and I," Trunks exclaimed in embarrassment.

"Sweetie, you don't have to tell him anything." Bulma grinned. "Just let him watch you ki blast a few of them. Show him we're not hiding any weapon tech from him and he'll loose interest. Do you have all the paperwork done to close the deal?"

Trunks gritted his teeth. "Yes Mother."

"I was just asking, you don't need to get defensive," Bulma said tartly.

Trunks bit back an angry retort. He knew that the only reason he was reacting so badly was because his mother had every reason to check up on him.

It wasn't that Trunks was bad at his job. In fact there were certain aspects of running Capsule Corp that he was phenomenally _good_ at.

Given Bulma and her father's boundless curiosity it was little wonder that they had set aside a sizable portion of their profits for pure research every year. Further it was no surprise that Capsule Corps held more patents than any other company, and did so by an impressive margin. Which didn't even take into account inventions that were too dangerous to disclose at all. The schematics for a Time Machine for example. Those sorts of inventions never left the main compound, after all Bulma was married to the world's best security system. With Vegeta's highly refined ki awareness no one came or went from the compound without his knowing. And Kami have mercy on any trespassers because Vegeta still found the concept to be an alien one.

Capsule Corp was a fount of scientific discovery, but they only made money off a handful of all those patents. That was where Trunks' talent came in. He wasn't an inventor like his mother or his grandfather, but he had a knack for finding markets for the inventions that had been collecting dust in Capsule Corp's closets. Trunks was good at making contacts and at selling other people on his notions.

What Trunks wasn't at all good at was paying attention to all the details and legalities of closing a deal. Paperwork bored him. He ran his secretary ragged just trying to pin him down long enough to get his signature on documents which his legal team had already examined, actually getting Trunks to look over a longer reports himself was something the poor woman had nightmares about.

Four years ago Bulma had turned running the company over to Trunks. She remained active in the labs, Capsule Corp's R&D division still answered to her, but she left the business side of things to Trunks. When Trunks left for outer space with Goku, Bulma came out of even partial retirement. She filled in for Trunks during the year he spent hunting the Black Star Dragon Balls. When Trunks got back he found the paperwork that he'd been all but drowning in had been tamed. Bulma had followed up on each and every deal he'd begun and had closed them all. She'd even gone back and started digging up deals he'd blown and breathed new life into them. And to Trunks' shame, she'd done it without neglecting her own work in the labs.

Capsule Corp's profits had set record highs that year. The Board of Directors, who had always been so infatuated with Trunks before, had become critical of him. And Trunks couldn't deny that they had a right to be so.

As Bulma finished setting the last dish on the table Bra raced into the kitchen and plopped into her chair. Vegeta made a more dignified entrance a few seconds later. Bulma beamed at her family, she was so glad she'd let Chichi convince her that family dinners were the way to go. "You all made it on time!" she exclaimed. "And you didn't even need my reminder."

The three Saiyans gave Bulma a wary look. Bulma's 'dinner bell' was the same alarm she'd used to used as her 'escaping baby demi-Saiyan' alert. And it was still set to a frequency picked for it's ear-shattering, mind-numbing effect on Saiyans. As far as Trunks, Bra and Vegeta were concerned that alarm had all the subtly of an ice-pick to the skull. The threat of having it set off was no joking matter in their opinion.

"Well dig in!" Bulma said.

Bra grimaced in distaste when Trunks and Vegeta started serving themselves heaping portions that barely fit on their plates.

"How was your first week at college?" Bulma asked her daughter.

"Not as different from High School as I'd hoped," Bra replied. "Now maybe if I were living on campus..."

"The campus is less than five minutes' flight away," Vegeta stated.

"Daddy! That's not the point!" Bra protested.

Bulma bit her lip. "Bra, you know why. You always had problems with the cafeteria at High School. Do you really think three meals a day with your classmates would be a good idea?"

Bra scowled and stabbed the food on her plate viciously. "I just hated all the flack I'd get about how much I eat."

"Speaking of which, you are having seconds right?" Bulma suggested.

Bra sighed and refilled her plate with a more generous helping.

"How are your classes?" Bulma asked.

"Freshman classes suck. I don't want to be well rounded! I want to be an actress!" Bra declared.

Trunks snorted and Bra kicked him under the table.

"At least I don't have to take PE anymore. It was always so dumb that I ever had to suffer through that nonsense. It wasn't like I ever got any exercise there. I get exercise jogging with Daddy, PE was always like strolling thought a china shop." Bra shook her head. "Guys haven't changed though. They all act so tough but I bench ten times what they do, it's ridiculous."

"Well dear, you have to admit you baseline might be a bit skewed," Bulma remarked. "What about Uub, he's a nice boy."

Bra rolled her eyes. "He's only got the biggest crush ever on Pan. And he's too shy to tell her. And Kami knows why but he's terrified of offending her Granddad, and I'm talking about Hercule! Uub's so totally not my type. Besides I don't like mohawks."

Deciding she'd been on the hot-seat long enough, Bra changed the subject. "Trunks-nichan, I thought you said you we're going in to work early but I saw Goten here this morning before I left for school."

"Goten was here?" Trunk asked. "Darn, I must have missed him. I wish he'd called, we could have grabbed lunch together or something."

"Goten finally decided to take his training seriously," Vegeta stated. He watched Trunks carefully for a reaction.

"I don't know why he'd bother," Trunks said. "What's the point? We can both reach SSJ2 already but without fusing there's no way we'll ever be able to stabilize SSJ3."

Vegeta shrugged. "The third level of ascension is a dead end. Kakarrot was only capable of maintaining it because he was able to master it while training in the Afterworld."

Trunks nodded. "Even when Goten and I are fused it's like balancing on the blade of a knife. It's more trouble than it's worth, we just didn't realize that when we were kids."

Vegeta acknowledged his son's point with a small nodded. "I don't believe that the third ascension is a true level, it's closer kin to the other Trunks' attempt to surpass Super Saiyan. Kakarrot and I didn't recognize it as such because we'd forgotten what it meant to have a tail."

"Are you going to be able to reach SSJ4 again without the Bluntz Wave Generator?" Bulma asked. She caught one glimpse of Vegeta's smug grin and knew the answer.

The Golden Oozaru was essentially an ascended form of the Oozaru. From what Vegeta had picked up from Baby during the parasite's possession of him he's learned that the Oozaru state had been the Tuffle's attempt to access the power of a Super Saiyan more easily. Constructed parasites like Baby had been how they'd planned to harness that power. Only Vegeta's ancestors had rebelled and exterminated the Truffles before they'd been able to enact their plans to completely enslave the Saiyan race. The Tuffle's plans had failed but they left behind artifacts of their tampering in the Saiyan DNA.

Super Saiyan Three was unstable. It was the cusp of Super Saiyan Four but the path of transformation had been corrupted, co-opted by the Tuffles to create the more easily attained Oozaru transformation. The power of the ascension, combined with the Oozaru form and control of the that power reopened the true path.

Trunks started at his father. "You mastered Super Saiyan Four?" Then his expression changed from congratulatory to disbelieving. "You're _not_ thinking about putting Goten through _that_!" he exclaimed. "It was one thing for Mom to hit you with the Blunt Waves, you already knew how to stay in control of the Oozaru... And you almost lost it anyway. But Goten? Are you crazy? Do you realize how incredibly _lucky_ we were that Goku came back to himself? Do you realize how close he came to killing everyone? To destroying that whole planet?"

"Hn, there's more to being a warrior than raw power. Have you forgotten that?" Vegeta asked.

Trunks stiffened angrily. Bulma winced. Bra looked between the other three, confused and curious.

"No Dad, I hadn't forgotten," Trunks said quietly. "But I guess Goten will have to learn for himself that you shouldn't try to teach anyone anything. The only thing you're actually good at is hurting people."

"Trunks! That was uncalled for!" Bulma exclaimed.

"He's the one who brought it up," Trunks replied.

"Is that what the problem was?" Vegeta asked coldly. "Not that you're a spoiled brat? You've never worked for anything. You get by on what talent you possess. But you never make more than a half-hearted effort at anything. And when that fact is pointed out to you, you sulk like a child."

Bulma sighed as she watched her son and husband stalk off in opposite directions. Vegeta rarely fought with his children. When he was upset with them he was more likely to lock himself up in the GR for a few days than to say anything to them about the issue. But when he did chose to fight, Bulma sighed again, he went for blood, and Trunks wasn't exactly slow to reciprocate.

* * *

Trunks didn't slam his bedroom door. He didn't want to shatter it. He did shut it very, very firmly though.

That what Vegeta had said came so close to mirroring what he'd been trying to avoid thinking about himself was just proof that what_ he _said about his father was true. Vegeta had an uncanny knack for picking up on vulnerabilities both physical and mental and exploiting them for all they were worth. That was all, it wasn't that what he'd said had any real basis. Vegeta was twisting what had happened back then, he was sure of it.

"_Come on Dad, I want to spar for real!" the twelve year old Trunks pled._

_Vegeta gave his son a skeptical look. "'Real' sparring? You want me to do more than deflect your attacks? The last time I hit you while we were training you started bawling."_

"_That was years ago!" Trunks protested. "Besides, I was more surprised than hurt. You didn't tell me you were going to hit back!"_

_Vegeta shrugged. He gave Trunks a lop-sided grin that was a mixture of pride and chagrin. "I didn't know I was going to. I didn't think you'd be capable of landing a blow."_

_Trunks smiled brilliantly. Sure the incident happened five years ago and the compliment was a bit backhanded, but praise from Vegeta was incredibly rare and always treasured._

"_Goten's dad sparred with us the last time I visited," Trunks pushed._

"_We'll see," Vegeta said. He walked over to the Gravity Room's control panel and decreased the setting._

_Trunks bounced lightly on his toes. "Come on Dad! This is too easy!"_

_Vegeta dropped out of Super Saiyan and waited._

"_That's no fun," Trunks pouted._

"_You want to spar, not do calisthenics," Vegeta said. "Your control is better in your base state, we will start there, your mother will throw a fit if she has to repair the GR again this month."_

_Trunks grinned and allowed himself to return to his base state. "Okay Dad!" he chimed._

_He and Vegeta bowed to each other formally. Then they took their stances. Vegeta's face was a blank mask. Trunks couldn't stop grinning and could barely keep himself from bouncing around the room n excitement._

_Trunks made the first move, charging full-tilt at his opponent the way he customarily did with Goten. Vegeta coolly side-stepped Trunks' charge then struck him between the shoulder blades. Trunks plowed face first into the floor._

_Trunks' next attack was much more cautious. Vegeta gave him a small nod of approval._

_For an extended period they traded blows. Vegeta held his ground. Trunks darted in and out, trying different angles, mixing feints and attacks._

_Every time he managed to break Vegeta's guard, Trunks felt a thrill of pride. It didn't matter that Vegeta was hardly effected by the blows Trunks managed to land, or that practically every time Vegeta moved he landed a clean blow with stinging force. It didn't matter that he was going to be as sore as hell in the morning. Trunks knew that when he landed a blow it only happened because Vegeta hadn't been able to stop him._

_Six months later Trunks was ready to scream with frustration. From what he could see, he was getting worse every day. With every match Trunks landed fewer blows. More and more he found himself resorting to wild stunts which only earned Vegeta's disapproval. _

_Trunks ricocheted around the GR like a pin-ball gone mad. He bounced off the walls, floor and ceiling, building momentum. Vegeta stood in the center of the room tracking Trunks' movements with a dark scowl on his face._

"_Ascend!" Vegeta ordered sharply as Trunks dove at him. His tone booked no defiance, Trunks responded without thought. The next thing Trunks knew, Vegeta had taken control of his cannonball-like attack. Instead of smashing into Vegeta the way he'd intended, Vegeta grabbed Trunks and with a sharp twist of his body he took them both to the floor. Trunks took the brunt of the fall as Vegeta used his greater mass to turn all that momentum Trunks had built up into his weapon against Trunks._

"_Can you stand?" Vegeta asked after giving Trunks a few moments to recover._

_Trunks sat up and looked around, his expression was dazed. He winced when he noticed the dent his body had left in the super-hard floor of the GR. He didn't even want to think about how that would have felt if he hadn't gone Super Saiyan._

"_Should I call the med-lab?" Vegeta asked flatly._

" '_M okay," Trunks mumbled._

"_That was incredibly stupid," Vegeta stated. "If you are not in control of your own power it is nothing but a tool for your enemy to use against you."_

"_You told me to go Super Saiyan!" Trunks protested._

_Vegeta didn't bother to point out that Trunks would have certainly needed medical attention if he'd taken that fall in his base state._

"_Do you think this is a game Trunks? Every time you pull one of these moronic stunts you leave yourself open."_

"_What am I supposed to do?" Trunks demanded. He felt his eyes filling with tears from hurts both emotional and physical. "You won't let me power up. Nothing I try works! What am I supposed to do?"_

_The realization that he was crying added shame to Trunks' already volatile mix of emotions. His body was surrounded by the lightening nimbus of Super Saiyan Two as his power spiraled out of control along with his emotions._

"_Do you think the ability to throw a tantrum while you are ascended makes you a warrior?" Vegeta asked coldly._

_He shifted back to a 'ready' stance, a silent invitation for Trunks to attack him._

_Twenty minutes later Trunks found himself pinned to the floor by his father's knee. Staring up into Vegeta's pitch black eyes it hit Trunks that his father had never even bothered to ascend._

"_This childishness is nothing, no matter how much power you throw into it," Vegeta stated. He stood up and walked to the control panel. In response to his commands it sparked and died._

_Distantly Trunks noticed that the GR was in shambles._

_Vegeta cursed and used a ki blast to smash the door. "Come back when you're ready to stop wasting my time," he told Trunks._

'And that been it for training together.' Trunks sighed. He'd been so angry and ashamed it had been almost a year before he'd even gone near the Gravity Room again and outside of occasionally sparring with the Sons he'd stopped training.

Even though he'd never tried training with his father again, they had mended fences eventually. Trunks knew it was possible that Vegeta had never brought the mess up again because he honestly believed he'd said everything that needed to be said on the matter. For his part, Trunks got over his anger the night he, Goten and several of their school friends had stolen and subsequently crashed a car.

Vegeta arrived on the scene a few minutes after the wreck and stayed for the whole miserable night. He had stayed with them in the Emergency Room while their less durable friends got X-Rays and stitches. He had gone with them to the police station where they'd gotten the riot act read to them over underaged and reckless driving.

It had been the first time in over a year that Trunks had remembered that he was glad Vegeta, not Goku, was his father. Because while Vegeta had been there, Goku had been off saving something at the request of the North Kai. To be fair, whatever Goku had been doing was probably more important than a stupid stunt pulled by a bunch of bored kids but Vegeta had been there when they needed a parent, Goku hadn't been and there was nothing unusual about that.

* * *

Bra found her father standing out on the balcony staring out at the stars. He looked like a carved statue in the cool light, distant and unapproachable. Bra scowled, she could just kick Trunks for putting him in this sort of mood.

"Daddy? Read me a story?" Bra asked.

Deliberately Vegeta turned and stared at her. "You're old enough to read for yourself brat," he said.

Bra shrugged. "I like your voice."

"What do you want Bra?" Vegeta asked impatiently.

"I want you to read to me," Bra insisted.

"Fine," Vegeta said. His tone clearly indicated that he didn't believe her for a moment.

Bra turned on the lights and sat down in the window seat. After a moment Vegeta joined her. Bra handed him a copy of "Grapes of Wrath." She leaned against his arm so that she could read over his shoulder.

"What is this crap?" Vegeta demanded after several pages.

"I have to read it for school," Bra replied. "It's a classic."

"Bunch of miserable weaklings," Vegeta muttered. He resumed reading.

When he finished the chapter Bra accepted her book back. "Trunks didn't mean it," she said.

"Princess, the truth is always a better weapon than a lie," Vegeta state. "I did raise both you and your brother to fight back when you're pushed."

"Trunks was still being mean," Bra insisted.

"Bra, go to bed," Vegeta ordered.

A few minutes later Trunks came in. He leaned against the door frame. "Is Bra done fussing?"

"Someday I'm going to have Bulma tell me how to explain to her that I don't get 'hurt feeling,'" Vegeta said drily.

Trunks snorted. "You? Explain something? Are you sure that won't kill you?"

Vegeta waited.

"Your fighting style is brutal and you combine offense and defensive strategies almost seamlessly," Trunks said. "You _count _on your nastier attacks to shake your opponents at the very least."

"To spar with me, without hurting me, even in our base states, you had to gut your style," Trunks continued. "As I got stronger you started using stronger attacks. I wasn't getting worse, I was fighting you at a higher level."

"It took you long enough," Vegeta replied. "Goten will be here at five tomorrow morning."

"I won't be there," Trunks said.

"What!" Vegeta exclaimed.

"I thought I was something special. The first time something happened to prove otherwise I quit. I don't want to do the same thing at Capsule Corp." Trunks said. "It is the same thing you know. I thought I was so great. Then Mom came along and showed me how much better I _could _have been doing if I'd just worked at it."

"So what?"

"Dad, you waited eighteen years for me to figure this out on my own because you hate explaining yourself. You can wait another couple of years but if I don't fix this thing with Capsule Corp now... Well my Board of Directors might try bribing Pan to shoot me off into space again."

Vegeta smirked. "If they asked, I'd do it for the amusement."

"Which is why I'm glad that they're all terrified of you," Trunks replied.

He turned to leave then hesitated. He didn't look back at Vegeta. "Dad? Was it really that easy to beat me?"

Vegeta looked startled. Could Trunks' pride have really been hurt so badly that it still bothered him? "I was making a point Trunks. You were being reckless, in a real fight that will get you killed."

"Was it really that easy?"

"It took six months for your mother to put the GR back together afterwards." Vegeta said. For several seconds Vegeta was silent. Trunks' shoulders slumped. "I fought extensively against fighters stronger than I as a child, I am aware of how to fight from power disadvantage..." Vegeta paused for a moment. He took a deep breath. "It was not at all easy," he admitted.

Trunks smiled, he hadn't even realized how much that defeat had still stung. "Thanks Dad." He paused for a moment, trying to think of a way to let his father know that his reasons for not wanting to train weren't because of Vegeta, at least not anymore, without committing the faux pas of addressing Vegeta's feelings even obliquely.

"Dad, Goten didn't ask you to train him on a whim," Trunks said finally. "I didn't know what he was planning, but I know he'd been taking Goku's being gone pretty hard. Hell, I wish Pan had waited another ten seconds before she hit that damn button. I, I think it would have been easier if Goten had of gone on even one real adventure with his Dad. I think Goten might really need this, to make up for not doing it when Goku asked him to. And I really need to fix the mess at work, to prove that I'm not just a spoiled brat, that I don't just run away when things get tough. Once Capsule Corps is under control, then I'll start training again, okay?"


	3. Training Routines

**Road to the Future**

**Author's Note: **Sorry this has taken so long, but I've been a teeny-tad bit busy. Since the last time I updated I've gotten married, finished my master's thesis and moved to a new state.

**Disclaimer: **Characters and premise are the property of Akira Toriyama, I'm just borrowing them for some non-profit amusement.

* * *

**Chapter Three: Training Routines**

"Thank the Kami," Goten muttered under his breath when Vegeta turned down the gravity from 700 G's, his preferred calisthenics setting, to a mere 300 G's. Goten was dripping with sweat and as he stood he felt his legs shaking from the exertion. He didn't remember the last time he'd pushed himself this hard.

Vegeta gave Goten a wicked grin. "Now we do forms."

Goten's eyes bugged. "Now?" he squeaked. Th point of kata's or forms was precision. Slow, deliberate repetition of movements which; when preformed at full speed; would become blocks, attacks and the movement between. Precision w the last thing Goten felt capable of after the work-out he'd just finished.

Vegeta simply began a set. Goten groaned and followed suit.

"Arms higher," Vegeta stated after a few minutes.

Goten sighed and corrected himself than began again.

For a long while they worked together in silence. It brought back memories for Goten. He and Trunks had looked at it as a game, they'd started when Goten had been a little bit less than three and Trunks a little bit more. They'd begged to be allowed in the GR. They spent hours trying to imitate Vegeta's movements, trading glances and trying to keep their own expressions suitably serious. Vegeta had occasionally corrected their mistakes but for the most part he had seemed to ignore their presence. Vegeta allowing them to play in the GR with him there had been the high-light of their day back then.

Goten sadly remembered how much he and Trunks had used to like spending time, any time, with Vegeta. For a good chunk of Goten's childhood he'd been the only father-figure Goten had known. For the first few years after his own father had come back to life it had been great, but gradually and subtly it had all gone wrong.

It hadn't been any one thing in particular. When he'd first met his father, Goten had thought Goku was the coolest dad ever. That had last for all of a couple of hours, when Goku had told Goten and Trunks that Vegeta and Gohan had died, they'd taken a blame the messenger stance. That moment hadn't lasted long, after all, Gohan and Vegeta hadn't stayed dead long. And Goku came back to life as well, and came home to live with his family. And at first, nothing could have been better. But it hadn't taken Goten long to realize that even when his father wasn't dead, Goku wasn't around all that much, worst of all Goku often disappeared on short notice. It hadn't taken long to figure out that spending time with Goku meant being willing to drop everything on a moment's notice when Goku came home. It had never bothered Gohan and while Chichi gotten angry about Goku not showing up where he was expected, as the years went on it seemed to bother her less and less. For Goten the opposite was true, the older he got the more he found himself unwilling to make the effort to include his father in his life. It didn't help that Goten out-grew most of the interests he'd shared with Goku.

It had been an odd feeling when Goten had realized that his parents got married because of a misunderstanding. He'd wondered if Goku had ever really loved his mother or if he'd married her just because he'd wanted to keep his promise. And sometimes, Goten realized that as much as everyone loved Goku, he still sometimes saw his father as a strange interloper in his family. And other times Goten convinced himself it was perfectly normal. After all Trunks and Vegeta had also grown apart, although Goten knew that stemmed from some incident that had upset Trunks so badly that he wouldn't even tell his best friend about it; Goten knew that he and Trunks could count the secrets they kept from each other on the fingers of one hand.

In so many ways Goku and Vegeta had always been opposite sides of the same coin. Goten knew being closed up in something like the GR would have driven his father crazy in a few short hours while Vegeta seemed most at home when locked within it's claustrophobic confines, but when it came to training the GR served the exact same purpose as the weights Goku had worn nearly everyday of his life, his afterlife as well. Vegeta generally acted as if he didn't like anyone, Goten had long since decided that Vegeta must like him at least a little, because it certainly wasn't good manners that had made the man tolerate his presence. Goku liked everyone. He was friends everyone in the whole universe, even people he hadn't met yet. Goten was Goku's son and he didn't know if Goku liked him better than he liked the little old man Goku had just happened to save while on trip to the grocery store. Vegeta and Goku both related with others almost solely through physical activity, the best way to get to know them was to spar with them. When they became teenagers, both Goten and Trunks had quit marital arts training, cut themselves off from the only line of communication they'd ever had with their fathers.

Goten couldn't remember why he'd ever thought that was a good idea. Especially not now, not when his father was gone again, forever this time because they depended too much on him to save the world whenever it needed saving. And they had expected him to do so without any help from them, because being ready to save the world disrupted their lives too much to bother with.

"Sloppy," Vegeta grunted.

Goten grimaced. He was tired. His thoughts were drifting. It had been too long, his muscles didn't remember the patterns anymore.

"I thought it would be like riding a bike," Goten commented.

"It takes constant work," Vegeta stated. "You slack off, you die."

"Yeah." Goten sighed. Tired or not he forced himself to complete the pattern correctly then began again.

Two hours later Vegeta called an end to the session. "Clean up," he ordered.

"What? Where are we going?" Goten asked.

The door slid open. Vegeta walked out. "Don't make me wait," he called over his shoulder.

Goten jogged after him.

Ten minutes later they were flying toward Capsule Corp's primary lab building.

"Don't ascend, don't damage the building. Bulma gets pissy if I break things." Vegeta declared.

"What?" Goten exclaimed as they landed and walked through the door.

"You, find Bulma," Vegeta ordered. Then he turned toward the security camera. "Something new today," he said with an evil grin. "I'm watching. He's the one to stop." He pointed at Goten.

"Uncle Vegeta, what's going on?" Goten asked, pled.

He grunted in surprise when the security guard in the lobby tackled him. Despite what Vegeta had said, Goten hadn't expected the attack, he really hadn't expected his attackers to be trained in ki usage.

Two other guards dog piled Goten, keeping him pinned while the first pulled back slightly to charge some sort of a ki blast.

'They're Capsule Corp security, normal people. Can't hurt them. Vegeta ordered them to attack me. They won't really hurt me... I think.' Goten thought, his eyes widening as the ki collecting in the guard's hands grew.

"Get your head in the game," Goten muttered to himself. "It's like a tournament. Just cause no one's out to kill you doesn't mean you don't play to win." He kicked the first guard away, disrupting the ki attack before it could be fired. Then he twisted free of the other two.

Vegeta caught the first guard before he could go through the lobby window. "I told you: Don't break the building!" Vegeta snapped.

"Don't hurt the building?" Goten muttered. By this point the guards' reinforcements had arrived, he was out numbered ten to one and all of his opponents were at least at the level Yamcha had been at in his prime. The stronger ones might have given Kuririn a run for his money. And there were more coming every minute.

Goten side-stepped one attack then grabbed the guard's arm and sent him skidding across the floor in respect to Vegeta's order to protect the building.

'There was a tempo to it,' Goten thought. Blocks flowed into attacks. Attacks moved him out of the path of his opponent's attacks. Twist out of the way at just the right moment to let a blow pass him to strike the opponent beyond him.

'Now I'm supposed to find Bulma,' Goten thought. Her ki was familiar but it didn't stand out the way a trained fighter's would have. His opponents weren't exactly giving him much of a chance to focus on picking her out either.

The ebb and flow of the fight warned Goten when ki blasts were coming. Grinning he deflected those toward Vegeta. 'Let him figure out how to keep them from doing damage,' Goten thought. After all this wouldn't be nearly as hard if Vegeta hadn't put him through the work out from hell not even an hour earlier.

Goten moved the fight across the room so that he could read the board that listed offices. Bulma's was 1208.

Goten knocked a pair of heads together then leapt over another attacking guard. 'Where are they all coming from? Are they shipping in people from the other buildings?' he wondered.

'They probably shut don the elevator,' Goten decided and smashing thought the elevator ceiling to fly up the shaft would be damaging the building. He headed for the stairs. 'With any luck it will be an open stair.'

At the door to the stairwell Goten grabbed one of the guards by his shirt front and swept him around to knock back the man's allies. Then Goten darted through the door and slammed it behind him.

Goten noted in passing that the walls and stairs were made of a strange glossy black material with a shrug he took to the air.

It wasn't long before the first ki blast intercepted him. Goten knocked it back at the man who'd fired it. He groaned as the guy slammed the stairwell door. 'Hope it's not strong enough to go through the door.'

Goten's mouth dropped open when the blast reflected back at him, bouncing off the stairwell's glossy coating like a laser off a mirror.

In seconds the whole stairwell was awash with dozens of different ki attacks ricocheting back and forth with no rhyme or reason.

Goten found himself battered back and forth, the ki blasts weren't strong enough to do him any real damage, even in his base state but they made flying up the stairwell like trying to swim up a waterfall and Goten knew he'd be black and blue from head to toe by morning.

Goten gave himself completely over to his ki sense and his reflexes. Twisting and tumbling. Bouncing from one wall of the shaft to the other, Goten began working his way up. By the time he made it up to the twelfth floor he was so lost in the moment that he almost continued right on past it.

There was another squadron of guards waiting for him there but the narrow hallway eliminated the advantage that their numbers gave them. Goten broke through their ranks and a few minutes later he slammed the door to Bulma's office closed behind him and leaned against it to keep anyone from following him in.

Bulma glanced up from the report she was reading. She took note of Goten's harried appearance. "I see you met Vegeta's playmates," she commented. She leaned across her desk and activated the intercom. "Alright everyone, the game's over."

"You can move now," she told Goten.

A few moments later Vegeta joined them. "Morning," he greeted Bulma.

"Ah, so the GR's not broken," Bulma replied. "You were just showing them off for Goten." She turned to Goten. "There are actually militaries who pay Capsule Corps for the privilege of having people work with our security forces."

"Wow," Goten said.

"You'd best go review them before they get anxious," Bulma remarked.

Vegeta nodded and Goten warily followed the older Saiyan back into the hall. They walked into a conference room where a large concentration of higher ki's had gathered.

Goten noticed the way everyone came to attention when Vegeta walked into the room.

"You held him for almost fifteen minutes," Vegeta stated. "Of course Goten is out of practice and doesn't sense Bulma's presence. Still at this rate of improvement you may just become adequate fighters before dying of old age."

Vegeta's declaration was met with broad grins. Goten shook his head at Vegeta's rather unique way of delivering praise.

"Squad seven, what took you so long?" Vegeta asked more critically.

"Er, well, we had to draw lots to see who got stuck staying at their posts," a shame faced young man explained.

"Decide before the alarm," Vegeta stated. "The next time I visit Satan City, you're on your own."

"In the halls, use the side offices as ambush points," Vegeta continued for another ten minutes pointing out flaws in the attack. Goten leaned back against the wall, out of the way, and watched.

Once Vegeta was done the majority of the security forces filed out. The few who remained looked like senior members.

"We intercepted two industrial spies and dealt with them in the usual way," one of the group reported. "We have the names of their employers..."

"Take care of it yourself," Vegeta replied.

"There were few incidents of vandalism against Capsule Corp property, but nothing that could be considered an act of violence. Unless you count South City being leveled in the fight last month."

"That wasn't about Capsule Corp," Vegeta commented.

"And it got fixed with the rest of the world anyway. The Corporate division respectfully requests that you _not_ order them to 'test' President Briefs' reflexes again. His reflexes have improved considerably since his vacation last year and while almost all of our forces have managed to master ki flight they still find being thrown out a window at twenty stories up to be a bit nerve wracking."

"Tell them to ambush Trunks somewhere besides his office," Vegeta replied callously.

The senior security guard grimaced. "Would it do any good if we asked President Briefs to order you to stop?"

Vegeta smiled. "He's the president of the company. I'm his father. Guess who out ranks whom?"

"Right. Would you tell him not to go Super Saiyan on us, please?"

Vegeta smirked. Trunks' reflexes truly had improved during his year in space if he was automatically taking attacks seriously instead of screwing around.

"How long have you been running security at Capsule Corps?" Goten asked once Vegeta was done. "And why didn't any of us know?"

"Eighteen years," Vegeta replied shortly.

Goten did the math and filled in the details for himself. Eighteen years ago Bra had been born dangerously premature because of the stress of being kidnaped from her lab had caused Bulma to go into labor early.

Two months after Bra's birth a mutilated corpse had been dropped on the front steps of Z-TV's broadcasting station. The words 'kidnaper' and 'blackmailer' had been scored into the man's exposed ribs. The damage to the body had been so extensive the police had been reluctant to say it was human without lab work. The man's identity had never been discovered and the case was never solved. There had been some speculation that the police lost interest in solving the case when they realized that all the damage to the body had been inflicted with bare hands.

Goten vaguely remembered Videl and Gohan quarreling because Gohan didn't think they should get involved. With a shock, the pieces fell into place and Goten wonder how he hadn't guessed back then.

Vegeta watched the play of expressions across Goten's face. To his surprise he felt an odd trickle of worry. All of the brats knew something of his past, even Bra and Pan had inklings, still it was only the ones who'd know him before he'd reformed who seemed to realize that there would be times when his reactions would have nothing to do with the rules of the society he'd come to live in.

Vegeta remembered sitting cross-legged on top of a table, casually juggling the gruesome trophy he'd taken before dumping the body. He'd been completely aware of the picture he presented.

_The head of the crime syndicate masked his surprise at Vegeta's presence in his boardroom. "You're the one who had been causing my collection agents some headaches," he said._

_Vegeta chuckled evilly. They both knew 'headaches' was a considerable understatement. He'd been given a list of names to be killed if he wanted Bulma back safe. They'd been nothing more than low level flunkies, killing them had been a fool's errand that would only annoy the man who'd sent them. Vegeta had known that even if the kidnapper hadn't, but it had suited his purposes to kill them. It bought him time and before they died they'd told him both who would want protection from them and who had sent them. _

_Vegeta tossed him the severed head, reflexively the syndicate head caught it and found himself staring into a fixed expression of agony and terror. He recognized the man as the one he'd ordered his men to make an example of._

"_Don't make me come looking for you again," Vegeta stated._

"_We weren't the ones who involved you in this matter. I believe __he__ was." The syndicate head glanced at the head in his hands._

"_Do I look like I care?" Vegeta asked. He brought up his power sharply, the walls of the room blew out around him simply from the force of his aura. "Make it your business to see that I don't get involved again." Calmly Vegeta walked out into the night. He'd made his point: His family was not a vulnerability that could be exploited to use him. The consequences of trying were too severe for anyone to want to contemplate bring them down on themselves._

The Z-Fighters had chosen not to confront Vegeta about the matter. A surprising number had more-or-less agreed that the man had deserved to die. He'd targeted one of theirs, someone who couldn't fight back. He'd worked in Bulma's lab, had known her, been trusted by her and he'd used that to betray her. And when his plan started falling apart, when Bulma went into labor, he didn't take her to a hospital, he just ran. He may not have meant to endanger Bulma's life or Bra's but he'd come frighteningly close to killing both and no one had been sure that the Dragonballs would be able to fix a baby who'd been born before she was ready to live.

Vegeta watched Goten realize the sort of ugliness Vegeta was capable of, even now, and worried.

Goten remembered Trunks and his grandparents arriving unexpectedly one afternoon, Trunks had been as worried as Goten had ever seen him, unable to explain beyond the fact that something bad had happened to his Mom. The elder Briefs had said that Vegeta was taking care of the situation, that they trusted him to protect Bulma, but that they didn't want him having to worry about Trunks as well. Goten remembered his father using instant transmission a few days later to take them to the hospital.

"_Trunks, we have to go," Goku said. He put his hand on Trunks' shoulder and raised his fingers to his forehead. At the last second Goten grabbed on as well. Then they were in a hospital room._

_Vegeta was barring the door._

"_If we don't get your daughter into an NICU unit she is going to die!" a doctor shouted at Vegeta._

_Vegeta glanced over at Goku. "Finally. If anything happens to Bulma, I will kill you. I don't care which of us is stronger."_

"_I'll protect her," Goku promised. "You can guard the baby."_

_Vegeta stepped aside and allowed the doctors to pass then followed them out._

"_Mom?" Trunks asked. He looked at Bulma, half scared, half relieved. _

"_I'll be fine," Bulma said. "But the baby came too early, the doctors are trying to help her."_

"_But Dad..."_

"_Your father is afraid that if he lets either of us out of his sight again something will happen." She looked at Goku. "He used my studies on ki to mask the baby and I's signature from Vegeta. I can't believe it. Andrew worked with me for almost three years. How long was he plotting this? Why would he do this?" _

_Vegeta's fear that someone else would take Bulma again hadn't been a particularly rational response but Goku had promised to stand guard until released, and so they stayed and the hours became days._

_The doctors told Bulma that the baby was doing surprisingly well, she heard that they were surprised that the baby was still alive. Goku tried evading Bulma's questions at first but he'd never been any good at keeping things quite. "Vegeta says she's not strong enough to keep breathing. He's lending her some of his ki to help, but she's so little. He could burn out her ki pathways if he gives her too much." Goku sighed with frustration. "Gohan's there to relieve him; Vegeta hasn't slept in a week now; but... He's thinking more in the old way, he won't trust us to help."_

_Bulma hugged Trunks tightly. Normally the lavender haired boy was at the wrong age to graciously accept hugs from his mother, but at this moment his mom seemed so afraid and helpless, unable to even leave her hospital room because of the injuries she'd sustained in getting to and breaking the machine that had kept her hidden from Vegeta. _

_Eventually the helpless worry in the room drove Goten out. Aimlessly he prowled about the hospital, but eventually he was drawn to the neonatal ward. He saw Gohan standing by the door, waiting for Vegeta to accept his help, and went to stand beside his big brother._

_Vegeta stood beside the NICU, his hand resting on top of the clear plastic. A gossamer thin web of ki connected him to the tiny infant within the unit, willing her to keep breathing, keep living. She was tiny, barely the size of Vegeta's hand. She had faint wisps of blue hair instead of the full head of hair that was normal for new-born Saiyans. A tail, light blue like her hair, curled lightly around her leg. Vegeta's eyes looked bruised, his shoulders were slumped with exhaustion. _

_A nurse came in to check on them and Vegeta spun around. He glared at her, his ki rising in case she was some sort of a threat but the baby's distress at the loss of the energy he'd been providing her quickly drew his attention back. Gohan grimaced as Vegeta struggled to force his ki back down to the unnaturally low level that was all the baby's frail system could tolerate. _

"_Vegeta, let me take over," Gohan requested, his voice was firmer and less deferential than it would have been a few years earlier, but he didn't move any closer. For a moment Vegeta just stared at him, then he nodded, finally accepting that he needed help. He watched critically while Gohan recreated the delicate link Vegeta had been maintaining. Once he was certain Gohan had done it properly Vegeta staggered over to the nearest wall, he was asleep even before his body slid to the floor. _

Goten realized that he wasn't actually surprised to learn that Vegeta had killed the person who had come so close to ending Bra's life even before it began, but his mind shied away from the details of how the man had died.

"So how'd I do?" Goten said, awkwardly changing the topic.

Vegeta gave Goten a vaguely amused look, hiding his own relief at the change of topic. "You were warned and they still caught you off guard. Do you actually require me to tell you how pathetic that was?"

"Next time," Goten promised.

"Next time don't expect me to warn you," Vegeta said.

"Wouldn't dream of it," Goten replied. "What now?"

Vegeta grinned.


	4. Dinner at the Sons'

**Road to the Future**

**Disclaimer: **Premise and characters borrowed from Akira Toriyama, I'm just borrowing them for a bit of non-profit fun.

**Author's Note: **I've seen different translations uses different names for Goten's GT girlfriend, Palace/Paris. I'm going with the Palace version from the sub because in subtitles she seems more naive and overly sheltered where she just seemed like a peerless airhead in the dub.

* * *

**Chapter Four: Dinner at the Son's**

"Pan-chan, would you put these dishes on the table for me?" Chichi asked.

"Sure thing Grandma," Pan replied. Sh picked up one steaming bowl then started trying to balance a second on top of it.

"Multiple trips," Videl suggested.

"But Mom!" Pan protested.

Her mother gave her a stern look. Pan sighed and relented.

Gohan stuck his head in the door. "I finished chopping the firewood. Mom, are you sure there's nothing else you need taken care of?"

"Stop fussing Gohan, I'm not infirm yet and dinner's almost on the table. Go get washed up." Chichi ordered. "I wonder were that brother of yours has gotten to. If there's one thing I thought I could count on it was you boys being on time for dinner."

"He'll be here," Gohan said. "He's using Super Saiyan Two to make better time."

Videl tilted her head to one side and focused on her ki-sense. "He was in West City? He is making good time."

"I don't know how Trunks-kun has been getting any work done with the amount of time Goten has been spending over there these last few months," Chichi said.

Gohan jumped out of the path of a golden blur that resolved into Goten. "Hi Mom, sorry I'm late, gotta grab a shower, don't start dinner without me!" Goten exclaimed in a happy rush as he gave his mother a quick hug then ran for the bathroom.

"Um, did Uncle Goten have a black eye?" Pan asked.

"More of a welt," Gohan said and that had only been the most obvious bit of damage that he'd noted. Gohan frowned, puzzled. He knew how Goten and Trunks sparred; they had outgrown the habit of running for the nearest mother after the first serious hit landed but they still called the spar at that point. They'd decide that they were getting out of control and find something else to do.

Gohan remembered his early training with Piccolo. He'd felt and looked like he'd been put through a meat-grinder by the time they called it quits for the night. Then they got up in the morning and did it all again, for months on end.

What Trunks and Goten did was good enough for tournaments, but Gohan knew what Piccolo had done to him was utterly necessary to prepare for a real battle. When it was for real, when it was life and death you couldn't call it quits or fall apart at the first hit that landed. When it was for real you had to be ready to fight through pain.

Goten looked too damaged and too happy to have come out on the losing side of a spar with Trunks. To Gohan, he looked like he'd been seriously training. And Goten looked like he'd been at it for long enough to have developed an understanding of what training really entailed.

Five minutes later Goten returned, clean scrubbed, grinning and with a distinct welt on his cheek, the sort caused by having the flesh mashed against the cheekbone so hard that it tore from the inside out.

"Sorry I'm late everyone," Goten repeated as he slid into his place at the table. "This looks great."

Chichi gave a soft little sigh but didn't question Goten further.

For a time everyone focused on eating. Once things slowed down Chichi asked Videl, "How is your father doing?"

"Better since Uub moved in with him," Videl replied. "He helps fill the void Buu left."

A sudden, uncomfortable silence fell over the room.

"Oh stop looking at me like that!" Chichi exclaimed irritably. "I've long since gotten used to Goku's wandering ways. He'll come back to me, he always does."

Chichi's declaration did nothing to relieve the others' discomfort.

During the hours and weeks following Goku's departure with the Eternal Dragon what Vegeta had realized instantly gradually sunk in for the rest of Goku's friends and family: This time he wasn't coming back. Now, more than half a year later, Chichi was the only one who hadn't accepted that.

Over the years Chichi and Goku had had their rough patches. They hadn't quite seen eye to eye on raising children when it came to training verses schooling. Chichi had never had an easy time resigning herself to the notion of sharing her family with the rest of the world. But they'd always loved each other, deeply and truly. Goku had said he'd come back and as far as Chichi was concerned there was no more to be said about the matter.

"So, Goten," Chichi said brightly. "You've been seeing that Palace girl for quite awhile now. When do we get to meet her?"

"Palace-chan?" Goten scratched at the base of his skull and laughed nervously. "I guess I could invite her to Bulma's next get-together."

Videl gave Goten an incredulous look. "You really think that's a good idea? You know how, well, boisterous those things can get."

"Palace-chan was pretty cool about my whole fight with Baby on our first date," Goten replied with a shrug. "Even the part where I was kinda rude on account of being possessed."

"Great!" Chichi exclaimed. "I'll just call Bulma up after dinner and suggest we might be over due for one."

"You walked into that Goten," Gohan said softly.

"Uub let me spar with him," Pan announced excitedly. "Grandpa Hercule said I was being too hard on his students. So Uub said he'd spar with me!" Pan giggled. "He kept blushing."

"Pan!" Chichi exclaimed. "You're much too young for that sort of thing. I have half a mind to call that Grandfather of yours and give him a piece of my mind!"

"Chichi, I'm sure it's nothing..." Videl began. "Wait, blushing?"

"It's been a while since Uub and I have talked," Gohan said thoughtfully.

"Argg! What is with you guys!" Pan shouted.

"Is everyone finished?" Videl asked. She waited for nods then said "Help me clear the table Pan-chan. Let's talk more about this sparring match."

"Goten, for old time's sake?" Gohan suggested with a gesture toward the back door.

"Sure," Goten replied.

Gohan dropped his jacket on the couch and set his glasses on the mantle. Goten followed him outside.

The brothers faced off in the air above Mt. Paozu. At an unspoken signal they flew at each other.

Goten was amazed by how easy it was to follow Gohan's movements. He had no trouble predicting and countering everything his older brother threw at him.

After several minutes of trading blows Goten threw a quick ki blast at Gohan's head, not bothering to take the time to really power it up. Automatically Gohan raised his arms to block the blast and Goten landed a solid punch to his solar plexus. Gohan doubled over, dropping to his knees as the breath was driven from his body.

Goten landed nearby and waited for Gohan to get back to his feet.

"I yield," Gohan said when he had the air to speak. He took a few deep breathes then climbed to his feet. "You can tell Vegeta I said he's doing a good job."

"Huh?" Goten said.

Gohan frowned and Goten gave up the innocent act with a shrug. "It shows huh?"

"Not quite as much as my style shows the influence of Piccolo's training, but yeah." Gohan replied. "And you're a lot better than you were six months ago, there's no one else who_ could_ have trained you."

Goten grinned. "I don't think I've ever worked this hard before in my life."

Gohan sat down on the grass beside his brother and stared up at the night sky. After a moment Goten sprawled out beside him.

"Do you know what you're getting yourself into?" Gohan asked quietly.

"I'm just doing what Dad wanted me to," Goten said. "What I should have been doing all along. I _should_ have been helping Dad when the Dragon Balls started hatching. I should have been good enough to make a difference."

Gohan sighed. "You know, for every time Dad ran into someone on the way to the grocery store who he just had to help there was always another time when the North Kai or Kaiosama came and asked him to take care of something for them." Gohan smiled sadly. "You know Dad, he could never turn away someone who needed help."

"Yeah, I know," Goten said fondly.

"And with the Lord of Lord calling on him help, there was never going to be a shortage of people who needed him," Gohan continued. "Even when he did have a quiet year he always kept training. I'm sure Vegeta's explained why with more vehemence than I ever could."

"Not a game. Get sloppy, end up dead. Always someone out there who's stronger," Goten paraphrased.

"He's right you know," Gohan said. "I wanted school, a normal life, time with Videl and Pan, a day job so I can take care of them. Before I knew it I'd lost so much ground."

"But I can't regret it," Gohan continued after a moment. "I don't want my life to be forever revolving around getting ready for the next battle."

"Dad and Vegeta seem pretty okay with that," Goten said.

"I could count the number of people who'd dare to ask Vegeta for a favor on one hand," Gohan said. "North Kai doesn't even come close to making that list. Kaiosama would only consider it if he had solid proof that acting was in Vegeta's own best interest." Gohan glanced away then said "Vegeta's cold enough to pick his fights."

"He's not that bad," Goten protested.

"I don't think Vegeta's entirely wrong," Gohan admitted quietly. "He puts his family first, so do I. But I couldn't stand by while knowing that I was capable of helping. So I don't train. Goten, I don't want to be able to help the whole Universe. I can't do that to Videl and Pan."

"It's not really an issue for me." Goten shrugged. "I'm not smart like you. I don't have a big company to run like Trunks. Do you see me doing anything else important?"

"Now maybe," Gohan said. "But what about this Palace-chan of yours?"

"She's been okay with me fitting dates around Vegeta's training schedule," Goten said. A puzzled frown creased his brow. "Sometimes she gets this weird look in her eyes and says she'd like the _watch_ me train..."

Gohan chuckled. "Little brother, for all your smooth talking, you're still totally clueless about girls."

"Like you're any different!" Goten huffed as his cheeks turned pink.

"You remember Erasa? Videl and I's friend from high school?" Gohan asked. "That girl was utterly shameless. If I didn't get what she was implying she'd explain, in detail, with diagrams occasionally."

Goten snorted.

"Don't believe me?" Gohan grinned. "Ask Trunks sometime if Bulma likes watching Vegeta train. I will bet you that he turns two shades of pale and starts making gagging sounds."

"Trunks only does that when something makes him think about his parents having... Oh," Goten finished. He grinned. "So Palace-chan..."

"Probably hopes that your work-out clothing as a tight as that stuff Vegeta wears," Gohan stated.

Goten blushed bright red but his grin only got bigger.

"Seriously Goten," Gohan said. "Is this want you want to do with your life? Do you want to spend the rest of your life getting ready to fight the next bad guy who comes along? And just thinking that Dad would have wanted you to do this isn't good enough. It's your life."

"Geeze Gohan!"

"No, once you get too far along this path you won't be able to get off if. You'll have too many enemies and too many people who have gotten used to depending on you, you won't be able to quit." Gohan said. "I don't want you trapped by this before you even think it through. You're Son Goku's son, the Universe already has your address. It won't take long for them to start noticing you."

Goten sat up and met Gohan's eyes. "It's what I want," he stated. "I'm tired of not being able to make a difference."

Gohan saw the certainty in his younger brother's expression and clapped his brother's shoulder in a silent show of support.


	5. Gathering

**Road to the Future**

**Chapter Five: Gathering**

**Disclaimer: **Characters and premise are the property of Akira Toriyama, I'm just borrowing them for a little non-profit fun.

* * *

"It almost seems more like a wake than a party," Bulma commented to Vegeta as she looked around the unusually subdued group gathered on the back lawn.

It was the first purely social gathering of the Z-Fighters since Super Android 17's attack. Unofficially, but technically the reason for the gathering was to introduce Goten's girlfriend to his extended family but there were too many missing faces, Goku, Kuririn, Piccolo and Buu were all gone. With the Dragon Balls lost the heavy knowledge that death was irrefutable, even for them now, hung over the gathering.

Vegeta shrugged. People died, he was used to that fact of life, had been accustomed to it long before he'd ever come to Earth. He'd been exposed to death so early in his life that he couldn't imagine ever having the sort of innocence the others possessed. Still, seeing 18 looking so lost without Kuririn at her side gave Vegeta a disquieting feeling. For the first time he found himself truly noticing the signs of age in Bulma and thinking about the possibility of being forced to live without her.

Chichi wandered over, she looked agitated. "Have you seen Goten?" she asked. "Oh where is that boy?"

Bulma smiled, her solemn mood broken by Chichi's fussing. The guest of honor was indeed late. "He's probably just letting Palace-chan in on what to expect," Bulma assured Chichi.

* * *

Outside of the wall, true to Bulma's predictions, Goten was having a last minute attack of nerves.

He offered Palace, a pretty if slightly befuddled-looking girl, what he hoped was a reassuring smile. It came out as more of an anxious grimace. "Palace-chan, don't take anything my mom says too seriously. She gets ahead of herself sometimes. Or anything Vegeta says. He's really no where near as bad as he likes to seem."

Palace nodded but looked puzzled.

"Trunks, Yamcha, my older brother Gohan, his wife Videl, my niece Pan, Bra and Marron are all basically normal, but they're gonna give me hell because I'm bringing a girlfriend home with me for the first time."

At that confession Palace smiled.

"You've met Hercule before. Bulma will behave since Mom would utterly freak if you got scared off before she figures out if she wants to scare you off or not. Remember, don't take Mom seriously. I like you, so eventually she'll like you, just hopefully not too soon, 'cause that's scary too."

Palace giggled. She thought it was cute how flustered Goten was over introducing her to his mother. She'd introduced Goten to her parents just the weekend before and they though he was a very polite young man, completely acceptable in their opinions.

"18..." Goten trailed off. He sighed. "18 hasn't been the same since Kuririn died. She might not even be there." He bit his lower lip. "If I'd gotten serious about training before everything went wrong..."

"I'm sure you did everything you could Goten-sama," Palace said, shyly slipping her hand into his. She didn't like seeing her normally cheery Goten looking so sad.

Goten shook his head slightly. "I left my Dad to take care of it," he confessed guiltily.

* * *

Trunks watched Marron sitting off by herself, staring off into the distance.

When he and Goten had been kids Marron had always been just enough younger to be considered a little pest, even more so than Bra and Pan. Bra and Pan were so much younger that by the time they were born he and Goten had been old enough to see them as practically another species. Marron on the other hand had been five when they were eight and nine respectively and had followed them around like a lost puppy.

Trunks shook his head. He didn't know what it was about girls but Kuririn had spoiled Marron almost as much as his father spoiled Bra. Pan was the only one of the girls who'd ever trained to fight and while she wasn't actually half bad all the time she spent hanging around her Grandpa Satan's dojos had given her a puffed up notion of her abilities. She'd gotten better during their year in space with Goku, both at fighting and at knowing her own limits, but she still tended to over-estimate herself and to be resistant to taking advise. Trunks knew his father hadn't trained Bra at all because he would always see her as something exceedingly fragile, to be protected at all costs, due to her pre-mature birth. Trunks wasn't sure why neither Kuririn nor 18 hadn't taught their daughter to do anything more than to look to them for protection.

Of course when they'd been kids he and Goten had never dared do anything that might make Marron cry, 18 could be more scary than even Vegeta in Trunk's opinion. He and Goten had generally found it prudent to develop numerous strategies for keeping Marron happy whenever the group had get togethers.

Trunks found himself wondering if any of his or Goten's old tricks for making Marron laugh would still work.

* * *

Shyly Pan glanced at Uub. "So, um, do you wanna spar again?" she asked.

Uub's face lit up in a bright smile, then he glanced around nervously. "It's it's okay with your mom and dad," he said.

Pan scowled. "Why should they care if we spar? I swear they've both gone nuts! It's just sparring, geeze!"

"Right, just sparring," Uub confirmed. He started blushing and ducked his head.

Pan giggled.

Uub smiled, glancing back up at her timidly. "So, sparring, right?"

"Right!" Pan confirmed. "I'm going to beat you this time!"

"You can try," Uub replied. "But I won't let you win."

"You better not!" Pan declared fiercely.

* * *

Goten escorted Palace around the side of the building to Capsule Corp's backyard where the party was taking place.

"Goten! Finally!" Chichi exclaimed. "Do you have any notion of how long I've been waiting, young man? And you must by Palace-san? It's so good to meet you, at last. Goten doesn't say nearly enough about you."

Palace smiled and bowed politely. "It's nice to meet you too, Chichi-sama."

"Now you just sit right here and let me grill you, I mean get to know you," Chichi declared.

"I'll protect ger," Videl whispered to Goten. Then she sat beside Palace and made shooing motions at her husband and his brother. "Girl-talk time, go amuse yourselves. Oh, and Gohan? I think Pan and Uub are sparring, they might need a referee...

"Or a chaperon," Gohan muttered as he rushed off.

Goten shook his head and went to find Trunks. He followed his ki-sense toward one of the groves of trees near the edge of the property. Goten frowned, he hadn't noticed it before because he'd been so worried about introducing Palace, but Trunks' ki-signature indicated the verge of panic.

Goten approached cautiously. If Trunks had found some sort of enemy they couldn't sense he didn't want to give up the advantage of surprise.

A few seconds later he discovered the source of Trunks' panic: Marron had her face buried against his shoulder and was sobbing harshly. Trunks had wrapped a tentative arm around her waist and was patting her hair awkwardly. When he saw Goten he mouthed, "Kuririn," silently.

Goten bit his lip and backed away as silently as he'd come.

Marron's sobs gradually tapered off. "I'm sorry Trunks-kun," she sniffled. "I wasn't planning on crying all over you."

"Any time you need a shoulder," Trunks replied awkwardly.

"I might take you up on that," Marron said. "I've been so busy worrying about Mom... I guess I needed to fall a little myself, I miss Daddy so much. Thanks for being here." She scrubbed at her face. "I better get cleaned up before Mom sees me, the last thing she needs is to worry about me right now."

"I'll walk you up to the house," Trunks said offering Marron his arm.

* * *

"Instead of scowling at her you ought to go talk to her Dad," Bra announced. "Tell her you're sorry for her loss."

Vegeta frowned at his daughter. "You should mind your own business. And you should know me well enough to know I do not observe human social niceties."

Bra rolled her eyes. "It's not a social convention if you mean it." She glanced at the ground. "Everyone else has already said it, it didn't do any good."

"Which is one more reason why I will not."

"It didn't do any good, because 18 doesn't believe it." Bra explained with exasperation. "She thinks we only said it because it's what people say. She thinks we only tolerated her because we liked Kuririn." Quickly, before she could lose her nerve, Bra added. "18's a lot like you. She doesn't expect anyone to forgive her past so she acts all cold and distant so no one gets the chance to reject her. But with Kuririn gone; Dad, she really needs a friend right now. I mean she looks awful! Almost like grief's some sort of sickness for her. And you're the only one who she'll believe means it _because _you don't do 'social niceties'. Besides, you don't feel sorry for her, you empathize. You keep looking at her, at how miserable she is, then looking at Mom. You're thinking about how you'd feel if you lost Mom."

"Brat, you are seriously over-stepping your bounds," Vegeta warned.

Bra scowled at her father. She loved him dearly but sometimes he could be so difficult. She knew he wasn't going to take her advise.

* * *

After retreating from Marron Goten watched Pan and Uub spar until Uub got in a decisive hit.

Pan immediately ripped herself out of the crater she'd made in the ground, ignored that Uub had an easy kill-shot lined up and would have thrown herself back into the match except Goten caught her shoulder.

"Squirt, in a spar, when the other guy _could_ have killed you, that means you lose," he said.

Pan stuck out her tongue. "I could have dodged that."

Uub bit his lip uncomfortably. Pan couldn't have dodged his attack had he released it, but he hated to tell her as much.

"You didn't have a chance in hell," Goten stated frankly. "But you're looking better than the last time I saw you fight. Keep practicing and you'll give everyone a run for their money."

Pan opened her mouth to object.

"Take a breather, squirt," Goten ordered. "Give me a turn."

"Goten-san?" Uub asked.

Goten grinned. "Of course it's just for fun."

Uub found himself remembering the last time Goku had suggested a 'little spar, just for fun.' He'd been sore for days afterwards. Uub deeply appreciate the time and effort Goku had spent in training him, but he'd long since discovered that he didn't share a saiyan's notion of fun, and he didn't get the same advantage a saiyan did out of recovering from taking damage.

"Unless Pan-chan tired you out too much..." Goten suggested with an air of innocence that didn't quite ring true.

"I'm ready," Uub said quickly, accepting the challenge.

Pan plunked herself down on the grass and sulked as her Uncle Goten usurped her new, favorite sparring partner.

Goten took to the air lightly. "No ki-blasts, no powering up?" he suggested.

Uub nodded with relief. "We're in the middle of a city, best to keep it close combat only."

"We're ten meters from Bulma's house," Goten replied, grinning. "If Vegeta's scared to hurt her buildings, I'm terrified."

Uub chuckled. "Makes sense to me."

"Ready?" Goten asked.

Uub nodded and the pair flew at each other trading kicks and punches at lightening speeds.

Pan forgot her sulk as she studied the pair intently. It wasn't long before the match attracted the attention of the rest of the fighters in the group.

Vegeta leaned against the wall of the building, arms crossed over his chest, standing back from the rest of the group. He watched the match intently, evaluating every move.

Yamcha, Gohan, Videl and Roshi joined Pan. Gohan sat down beside his daughter. "They're looking pretty good. They've both been working hard," he remarked.

Pan sighed. "Is this point making?"

"I was watching earlier," Gohan said. "You'll get better sparring with Uub, but your uncle was right, you'd lost the match. Uub likes you too much to be your sensei, he won't tell you when your wrong."

"Dad!" Pan protested hotly.

"So we'll be sparring at least once a week, now," Gohan continued. "I don't want you jumping in over your head."

"Dad, I'm not a child!" Pan objected.

"Sorry Pan, but yes you are," Gohan stated. "Your Uncle Goten reminded me of how much work really goes into being ready for serious combat. I don't want you running off on another adventure before you're aware of that."

"Like old times," Roshi remarked to Yamcha. "Almost reminds me of the 23rd tournament, when Goku and Tienshinhan fought. Hell of a good fight, back then skill still mattered, it wasn't all about the next power level."

Yamcha scowled darkly. "But it's not Goten who reminds me of Goku. There's hardly a trace of his father's style left in him."

Trunks joined Vegeta well after the rest of the group had assembled. "Goten's holding his own," he said quietly. "He's gotten a hell of a lot better in just a few months. Uub trained with Goku for years."

"Goten's saiyan," Vegeta replied with a shrug.

"Still, Goten and I never totally quit sparring with each other." Trunks shook his head. "It was never serious, just screwing around for old time's sake. I was distinctly ahead after my year off planet. Now, he'd clean the floor with me. He's improving a lot since you started training him."

"Offer's still open if you want to join," Vegeta stated.

Trunks smiled regretfully. "Sorry Dad. Since I decided to get serious about Capsule Corp you know what my schedule is like."

Vegeta kept his eyes on the fight. Without looking at Trunks he said. "It's different. Goten is older than you were. Besides, getting the crap beaten out of him is part of his goal."

"What?" Trunks demanded, startled and protective of his oldest friend.

"You wanted to be impressive. He wants to atone for not putting the work in sooner," Vegeta stated, remembering that Trunks had stopped training with him over wounded pride.

"Maybe in another year, once I get a better handle on this business stuff," Trunks offered.

They broke off when Yamcha turned around and hissed at Vegeta, "What the hell did you do to Goten?"

Vegeta gave Yamcha an annoyed look then turned back to the fight, effectively dismissing him.

Yamcha grabbed Vegeta's arm. "Don't turn your back on me! Goten is Goku's kid. You had no right."

"And if Kakarrot were alive Goten wouldn't have _asked_ me to train him," Vegeta snapped, swatting Yamcha's hand away.

"Yamcha," Gohan said in a soft, flat voice. "Drop it before Goten over-hears you. He's already upset over not being able to more in that last battle. He doesn't need the suggestion that he's being disrespectful of Dad's memory by learning from someone else. He can't go back and decide to learn before Dad died."

* * *

'If you weren't throwing ki-blasts, aerial combat seriously sucked,' Goten quickly concluded.

Flying was a matter of will which meant when both parties had similar speeds a mid-air flight turned into a basic slug-fest. You stayed right on top of each other and traded punches 'til one person couldn't hack it anymore. It was limiting, not to mention dull.

Gradually Goten allowed himself to sink ground-ward. Uub automatically matched him, not wanting to give Goten the room to try something. When Goten's feet touched the ground he used the additional leverage to power an uppercut. His feet dented into the ground, Uub went reeling back.

Goten tried to take advantage of the moment but Uub recovered quickly. He got a foot on the ground, flipped over Goten and kicked him in the back. Goten caught himself on his hands, kicked Uub in the stomach and was back on his feet. He spun around and punched Uub.

Uub caught Goten's wrist, fell back with the blow and tossed Goten. Goten landed on his feet and spun around as Uub hopped up again.

More gradually than the fighters the rest of the party gravitated toward the match. Palace clapped her hands together and watched Goten and Uub with fascination.

Chichi stared at her youngest in shock for several long minutes then turned and walked away.

Bulma quickly went after her. "Chichi? Are you okay?"

"I tried so damn hard to keep Gohan out of all this," Chichi said. "In the end it did no good and it wasn't even necessary. Gohan's not his father, he fights only when he absolutely has to, he doesn't like it. In the end all I did was act like a child; throwing tantrums, blaming Goku because the universe was full of bad people. When Goten was born, I tried to be more reasonable. The truth was, I never worried about Goten that way. He never seemed to take the fighting, or anything, seriously."

Bulma gave Chichi a small smile. "I guess he grew up. You eventually learned to let Goku go his own way."

Chichi sighed, learning to accept that Goku would always be going off on one quest or the other, and that it wasn't a personal slight against her, had been one of the more difficult lessons of Chichi's life. "Well, at least Goten's found a girlfriend I like," Chichi said. "And if he's going to be taking after his father, I'd best see that he's married before he can start disappearing for years on end."

* * *

Goten sensed Uub at his back a fraction of a second too late. He tried a last second dodge but it wasn't quite enough. Uub's kick planted him face first in the ground.

"Okay," Goten laughed. "Too much more of this and I'll be tasting dirt with my dinner. I surrender."

Uub offered Goten a hand up. "Good match."

"Yeah, next time we should try this out where we can really cut loose."

"Er," Uub said uncertainly.

"Just ki-blasts," Goten laughed. "No Super Saiyan stuff, I swear. It'd take all the fun out of it."

Chichi and Bulma rejoined the group. While Chichi worked her way toward where Palace was watching Bulma went to stand by Vegeta.

"You look pleased," Bulma remarked quietly.

"Another month and his skills, not simply his raw power will have surpassed Uub's," Vegeta remarked. "He has the potential to match his father, and the proper mind-set. I haven't had a sparring partner worth the bother since Kakarrot's departure from the plane."

Bulma shook her head, all these years and that was still as close as Vegeta would come to admitting that Goku had been his best friend and he missed the other saiyan.

"Could you prep a spaceship?" Vegeta requested. "And build another Bluntz wave generator."

Bulma looked startled. "You _do _remember why we cut their tails off in the first place?"

"I have a plan," Vegeta stated.

"It better be a good one, because I won't protect you from Chichi if you hurt Goten."

Vegeta rolled his eyes. "All my plans are good."

* * *

Once the spar ended Palace reclaimed her boyfriend. "Oh, Goten-sama, that was terribly exciting," she exclaimed.

Goten rubbed at the back of his head and blushed. "And I didn't even win," he commented.

"You were both so skillful," Palace insisted. "It was amazing."

"I think she'd be amazed by anything he did," Oolong commented to Roshi.

Roshi chuckled. "Young love, no point in arguing with that."

"Goten," Chichi announced. "You'll be happy to know I quite approve of Palace-chan. When will you be proposing?"

"Mother!" Goten exclaimed.

"I think a June wedding would be nice," Palace smiled happily. "My parents liked Goten too."

"Palace-chan?" Goten asked worriedly.

"It sounds lovely dear," Chichi remarked. "We really should start making plans."

As they walked off together Goten turned to the everyone else. "What just happened?"

"Well, little brother, I think you just got engaged," Gohan replied fighting not to laugh.

"Palace-chan and your mother hit it right off," Videl added. "Of course it didn't hurt one little bit that Palace thinks the world of you."

Yamcha grinned, "I'm not at all surprised that they hit it off. Didn't that stunt they just pulled remind anyone of how Chichi and Goku got engaged?"

"At least we didn't have to explain to Goten here that marriage is not a type of food," Roshi laughed.

"And it's July now," Videl remarked. She patted Goten on the shoulder. "You've got a whole year to get used to the idea or to get out of it."

"I do like Palace-chan," Goten said. "And I pretty much knew Mom was going to do that. I just thought Palace would freak the way you did the first time Mom started talking marriage... and grandchildren."

"Well, your Palace-chan isn't the unrepentant tomboy that I was," Videl said. "She's actually thought about herself an marriage in the same sentence before your mom brought it up."

"Trunks, you're my best man right?" Goten asked.

"Naturally." Trunks laughed. "But does this mean I help get you off-planet before the wedding, or sit on you if you decide to run?"

"I'll let you know just as soon as I figure it out," Goten replied.


	6. Setting Out

**Road to the Future**

**Chapter Six: Setting out**

**Disclaimer: **Characters and premise are the property of Akira Toriyama, I'm just borrowing them for a little non-profit fun.

**Author's Note:** Given that Goku was gone from Earth before this story even started it's just a little odd that I feel like I've spent more time worrying about his character for this story than I ever have before. It's been a bit of a balancing act between Goku as a good person and a true hero whom most of the other characters have a huge amount of respect for and Goku as a parent and family member, an area where he's much more flawed and where there's a some underlying resentment directed toward him.

I want to stick within cannon, Goku is a hero and a good person, he's frequently not around for his family, but his intentions were always good (although I can't really see his decision to stay dead after the Cell Games as anything but misguided) and frequently it is a matter of life and death, for someone and his family comes second to that. In one sense Goku is making the 'right' choice, but for his family, consistently coming in second to any stranger who needed him more urgently I think would be hard emotionally.

* * *

After their guests had left Vegeta found Bulma on the balcony outside of their room and joined her.

"So what's this plan of yours?" she asked.

"The data from Vegeta-sai, on why so many of us died from the Oozaru transformation. I'm going to get it back. Then you can look at it, figure out if it will happen to Trunks or Goten if they attempt the Golden Oozaru intermediary stage needed to reach Super Saiyan Four."

Bulma stared at her husband, her mouth hanging slightly open for several long minutes. "You're the one who's plans _aren't _based on a hope and a prayer," she exclaimed. "First off, what are the chances that the data even exists anymore? The planet was destroyed."

"I was there, after. The planet did not explode, it broke up. The larger part of the population didn't die from the from the breaking up of the planet," Vegeta said stiffly. "They suffocated during the hours after the atmosphere had dispersed."

Bulma looked away. There were things in Vegeta's past that were simply beyond her comprehension. The picture his words painted, the fact that she knew he'd only been ten when Frieza forced him to witness the graveyard his planet had become, made her feel ill. Vegeta going back to what was left of Vegeta-sai now did not seem like a good idea to Bulma. It especially bothered her that he wasn't admitting what a long-shot this idea was.

"Vegeta, you know you wouldn't even notice explosions that would completely fry my computers."

"What I'm looking for was kept on an orbital platform," Vegeta replied. "Vegeta-sai's full moon appeared only once every seven years on the planet surface. For the research, to determine which of the children were worth resources, the sight of the full moon was required upon demand."

"And then there's the part where I'm supposed to figure out something numerous scientists failed to discover even after generations of work," Bulma continued.

"I have faith in your skills," Vegeta stated.

"Well," Bulma couldn't help but blush and stutter, pleased by the compliment. "But-"

"They weren't willing," Vegeta said. "The other scientist, they were spoils of war, slaves." He shrugged. "They had motivation to see us dead, not to save us."

Bulma sighed. "I'll try, but you talk to Goten before we start anything. He's old enough to make up his mind about the risk, but tell him first. He shouldn't feel in_ any _way obligated to try this."

* * *

"So Vegeta, what did you think of Palace-chan?" Goten asked as he and Vegeta began calisthenics the morning after the bar-barque.

"She is the most vacuous person I have ever encountered," Vegeta stated in a neutral tone. He grinned wickedly. "She's perfect for you."

"Hey thanks!" Goten exclaimed.

A short bark of laughter escaped Vegeta.

"Not a compliment huh?" Goten realized.

"How did you figure that out?"

"Thought for two seconds about who I was talking to," Goten replied.

"Perhaps you aren't a complete moron," Vegeta allowed.

They worked on raw power for a few hours then switched to forms.

"Interested in learning Super Saiyan Four?" Vegeta asked.

"SSJ4? Of course, but what's the catch?" Goten asked.

"You will have to learn to control the Oozaru state," Vegeta stated. "And it's yet to be determined if you can even survive the transformation."

"Survive?" Goten asked, his voice climbing a note in pitch.

"You've never transformed, pains were taken to ensure that," Vegeta said. "There is a forty percent chance that your body will tear itself apart during your first transformation. I assume it's a messy way to die."

"No kidding!" Goten exclaimed. He hesitated. "Is there some way to check if this'll kill me before we try it?"

"So you're still interested?" Vegeta asked.

"In SSJ4? Hell yeah. You and Dad were just cool," Goten exclaimed. "In maybe dying, not so much. I want to get stronger so I can be of some use helping to protect this planet. I'm not going to accomplish anything being dead."

Vegeta inclined his head slightly in agreement. "We're going to Vegeta-sai."

"But-" That was as much as Goten could manage to force out of his shocked brain.

"To the remains of Vegeta-sai," Vegeta corrected himself. "It may be possible to recover the data collected on the ones who died during the transformation. The woman will analyze it and determine the likelihood of your dying. Then you decide where we go from there."

"Alright," Goten agreed. "When do we leave?"

"One week," Vegeta grinned wryly. "You'll be back in plenty of time for your wedding to the airhead."

* * *

"Son Goten! You are not going into space just before you get married!" Chichi exclaimed, she waved her rolling-pin threateningly. It wasn't the frying pan, but she was baking after all.

Goten held up his hands placatingly. "Mom, we're leaving right away. Vegeta says I'll be back in plenty of time for the wedding."

"A year Goten, it's only a year. I know how these things go!" Chichi exclaimed. "At _best _you'll be back five minutes_ after_ the ceremony starts!"

"Mom!"

"What will your fiancee think?" Chichi demanded. "Taking off while we're in the middle of planning the wedding!"

Goten scratched at the back of his head. "What good is having me around going to do when it comes to planning a wedding?" he wondered. "Won't I just be in the way?"

"Well- yes," Chichi admitted. "But it's traditional for you to be there, even if you don't contribute anything useful to the planning process."

"See Mom, the best thing I could do is stay out of the way. And you want me to stay busy so I don't have time to develop cold feet, don't you?"

"Well, you do have a point,' Chichi admitted.

"And it's only fair that Palace-chan should know what she's letting herself in for," Goten continued. "I mean, I'll probably be going off like this all the time. Gohan said it wasn't completely Dad's choice to be gone all the time."

"No," Chichi sighed. "Your father could never stand by while someone needed help." She looked wistful and sad. "I just wish I'd suggested that I could have gone along a few times. I was a pretty fair martial artist myself once, I was certainly better at roughing it than Bulma. I think she shared more adventures with Goku than any of us."

"Yeah," Goten said. "It would have been nice to spend more time with Dad while he was in his element. Maybe sometime I could find a not-so-dangerous adventure and bring Palace-chan along."

Chichi smiled and nodded encouragingly. "That's a very good idea," she said. "I suppose this trip of yours isn't a terrible idea. I'll just talk to Bulma; have her make sure Vegeta knows you're to be back on Earth at least a month before the wedding, no matter what. Even if the whole universe is ending I expect you to be at your wedding on time. Do you understand me young man?"

"Yes ma'am," Goten replied promptly, years of training showing. "But if the universe ended, wouldn't that sort of mess up the wedding anyway?"

"No excuses!" Chichi exclaimed as she brandished her rolling pin.

* * *

Bra perched on the railing, watching as her mother readied the space ship for departure in a few days. "Trunks took Marron out for lunch twice last week," she reported.

Bulma glanced up from her work. "Is he just trying to cheer her up or does he like her?" she asked.

"Sappy, spaced-out looks, stays dressed up for their lunches. Oh yeah, he likes her," Bra declared.

"Excellent work my little spy," Bulma laughed. "Now if Trunks were half as observant when it comes to you..."

Bra grinned. "He's a boy, the most oblivious species on Earth. My secrets are safe."

"Trunks and Kuririn's little girl." Bulma smiled to herself. "I'm not too young for grandchildren anymore."

"Yep, you're positively ancient," Bra teased.

"Watch your mouth young lady," Bulma shot back, but she was still grinning. "With Marron Trunks won't have to worry about family introductions. Although Goten's Palace-chan handled it pretty well."

"She's a ditz," Bra pointed out. "She didn't even have the sense to be scared of Daddy."

"She's not dating you dear," Bulma chuckled. "Vegeta has no reason to terrorize Palace."

"Rub it in why don't you," Bra complained. "I mean Marron and Trunks dating, Goten's getting married, even Pan's catching a clue about Uub. And all the guys I know are pathetic losers."

"I'm sure there's someone out there who meets your exacting standards," Bulma chuckled.

"Well if he is, he's not on this planet," Bra muttered irritably. Slowly her gaze was drawn to her mother's spaceship and a light went on in her eyes. She glanced at her mother and quickly resumed complaining about all the utterly wretched dating prospects she was forced to put up with at college.

After all, it wouldn't do for her mother to get suspicious about the direction Bra's thoughts were moving in.

The day of the launch dawned sunny and bright.

Palace stared up at the spaceship in awe. "Goten-sama, that's an honest to gosh spaceship!" she exclaimed.

Goten grinned. "And this time I'm going to be on it instead of standing in the afterburner-wash."

Palace giggled. "Do you know I though you were joking when you told me you were going to miss our date because you were going into space."

"It is pretty hard to believe," Goten agreed.

Chichi hurried over. "Did you remember the bag I packed for you last night?" she asked.

"Yes Mom, it's right here," Goten said as he lifted the duffle bag hanging over his shoulder.

"Alright then. I need to get your measurements. I'll have Oolong shape-shift into you if you don't get back in time to get fitted for your tux."

"That's a great idea!" Goten exclaimed. He wondered what it would take to bribe Oolong into standing in for him for all the other times his mother cornered him into a clothes shopping trip.

Meanwhile Bulma, Gohan and Videl where running last minute system checks. Pan sat beside her mother. She kicked her heels boredly then, seeing Palace leave Goten's side, she hopped down.

"Just where do you think you're going?" Videl demanded.

"I was just going to talk to Palace-san. I ought to get to know her, she's going to be my aunt isn't she?" Pan whined.

"Not today," Videl said. "Today I don't want you out of my sight for even a second."

"Mom, don't you think you're being a little unreasonable?" Pan demanded.

"After last time? No."

Inside the ship Gohan glanced across the command deck at Bulma. "Don't you think you should be keeping an eye on Bra?"

"She's in her room sulking," Bulma said. "I don't know what she was thinking last night. First she misses curfew then she hides her ki, sneaks in and tries to lie about it. I f she hadn't missed her curfew why would she have hidden when she got home from her father? Does she think her parents are stupid?"

Gohan grinned. "She's a teenager, what did you expect?"

Bulma gave Gohan an ironic smile. "Yes, I remember when you were a teenager."

"Me? I was an angel," Gohan laughed.

"Until Goku came back, then you started making up for lost time," Bulma replied. "Honestly we were all relieved, it was about time you started acting like a kid."

"According to my checks we're ready to go," Gohan remarked.

"I'm ready as well," Bulma said. "Shall I find our astronauts?"

She spotted Vegeta determinedly ignoring Palace who was talking earnestly at him. "I just know you'll take good care of my darling Goten," she said as she trailed after Vegeta.

Bulma grinned and shook her head. "The spaceship's ready," she called.

"It took you long enough," Vegeta stated as he leapt over the railing and dropped three stories to land lightly at Bulma's side, leaving Palace far behind.

"Was the nice little girl scaring you?" Bulma asked teasingly.

"She makes your mother look cynical by comparison," Vegeta stated with a deliberate shudder.

Bulma laughed. Vegeta had spent his first two years at Capsule Corp convinced that her mother was trying to poison him. That had been the only possible explanation, to his mind, for her practice of being nice to him. Bulma still didn't know what her mother had done that finally convinced Vegeta that she simply liked him. To Vegeta Bunny Briefs was one of the most alien beings he knew, she was always positive, cheerful and optimistic, but she'd also been one of the very few people he'd trusted without reservation. Bulma thought he might have taken her death harder than Bulma herself.

"Let's go collect Goten and get this show on the road," Bulma said.

Vegeta wrapped an arm around Bulma's waist and flew them up to the opposite side of the observation deck. "Brat, we're going," he stated.

Goten, still wrapped in his mother's tape measure looked grateful.

"Hold still!" Chichi ordered. "Just a few more measurements."

"Mom! What haven't you measured?" Goten whined.

"If you didn't fidget I wouldn't have to double check everything," Chichi replied, unperturbed.

"This is a waste of time," Vegeta declared. "I will not allow him to slack in his training while we're gone."

Chichi looked dismayed at the realization that Goten's dimensions would have changed after another year of hard training. "You had better get him back here before May," she ordered, glaring at Vegeta.

"I've got to say goodbye to Palace-chan," Goten excused himself as he broke free of the measuring tape.

Swiftly Bulma caught Chichi's eye then glanced significantly toward the door.

Chichi shook her head and smiled to herself. "Well, I'll just be going over there, to do something," she announced. She knew Bulma wanted to say her own goodbyes in private. Even after two kids and better than twenty-five years together, Vegeta still considered nothing more embarrassing that being caught displaying affection for his wife.

* * *

The launch went off without a hitch. No lost or damaged parts fell back to Earth as they left the atmosphere. No one was left standing on the launch pad in a cloud of smoke, at least not anyone who was supposed to have been on the ship. In fact they were three days from Earth before Vegeta and Goten realized that all was not going according to plan.

"Morning Daddy," Bra announced as she sauntered onto the bridge. She grinned mischievously. "I told you, you couldn't know for sure that I _wasn't_ home for curfew."

For a moment Vegeta and Goten just stared at her. Vegeta collected his wits first. "So what? After this stunt you're going to be grounded until you're forty."

"But not until after we get home," Bra pointed out. "In eleven months. If you turn around now it'll take three days to get back, three days to get to this point again and you'll have wasted the last three days. Plus you'll have to spend a few days refueling to make up for the extra planet-fall. It takes a lot of fuel to get in and out of a planetary gravity well. And you're on a schedule."

"Keep talking Brat, you're digging yourself in deeper," Vegeta stated.

Bra grinned. "You didn't want me to be the only one who didn't get to go off planet did you?" she pouted.

"You'll be lucky if you ever leave your room again," Vegeta replied.

"But you'll let me stay," Bra replied, confident that she could get back in her father's good graces before they returned to Earth and her grounding became enforceable.

Vegeta smiled unpleasantly. "You're right, I'm not going to turn the ship around. You can start your grounding here."

"You're not serious," Bra stated.

"Deathly," Vegeta replied. Goten, move your belongings into my quarters and set up another bunk. Bra will be remaining in yours for the duration of the trip."

Goten left with alacrity.

"These will be the rules you will live by while we are not on Earth," Vegeta told Bra. "You will remain in your quarters, leaving only for trips to the galley or the facilities. You will not, under any circumstances, hide your ki from me. If I am not aware of your location at all times I will find a way to make your life more unpleasant. You will not leave the ship under any circumstances short of a direct order from me or imminent peril to your life. On the slim chance that it becomes necessary for you to exit the ship at some point prior to our return to Earth you will not speak to anyone other than Goten or myself. If we are off this ship you will not refer to yourself as Saiyan and you will not refer to our relationship. Do you understand?"

Bra stared at her father. Disbelief, shock and hurt warred for dominance on her face. Her eyes started to water, she spun on her heel and ran.

* * *

**Aside:** My husband was actually very helpful in planning our wedding, however we both got a good laugh out of Wedding Planning books: For brides there are whole shelves of books, some of them thick enough to compete with the Bible, on planning a wedding. For grooms, my husband managed to find a pamphlet which basically said: "Act interested, let your fiancee do what she wants."


	7. Hostile Space

**Road to the Future**

**Chapter Seven: Hostile Space**

**Disclaimer: **Characters and premise are the property of Akira Toriyama, I'm just borrowing them for a little non-profit fun.

**Author'****s Note: **Sorry it's been so long, I've just been going through a phase where nothing I write comes out the way I want.

//Telepathy//

* * *

Goten gritted his teeth as he struggled to complete his morning calisthenics. Even for him the gravity was much too high. And even though he knew that Vegeta was stronger in his base state; a side-effect of the fact that it was harder for a full Saiyan to ascend; the gravity was too high for Vegeta as well. Not that a little thing like that had stopped Vegeta from maxing out the generators that morning.

Bulma had constructed the ship with three gravity generators which produced over-lapping fields. In the lower deck, the large open area that could have been a cargo hold but was more commonly used as a training area, the fields overlapped constructively, increasing the gravity well past the level any single generator could have produced. On the bridge the overlap was destructive, keeping the gravity low to avoid unnecessary strain on delicate components. The crew quarters weren't in an over-lap field, the gravity there was higher than Earth-normal but no where near Goten and Vegeta's training levels.

The increased gravity woke Bra. The previous night there'd been a certain amount of comfort to be found in curling up and crying herself to sleep. At twenty times Earth's gravity the position was just uncomfortable. She rubbed at her eyes dislodging the salt crystals that formed tracks across her cheeks. She chewed on her bottom lip thoughtfully. It was difficult for her to move at 20 G's but she still should be able to complete her normal work-out.

For Bra working out had always been about maintaining muscle-tone and good health. She ran with her father because she liked the togetherness time, but she'd always consciously avoided activities that could encourage muscle-bulk. It was bad enough in gym classes just to know that she could bench an order of magnitude more than what the guys did, there was no reason to look like she was abnormal. Or that had always been her opinion. Her father had never pushed her to train the way he pushed Trunks, she'd always assumed he didn't care whether she could fight or not.

Bra stared at the floor. She knew Vegeta had never really approved of Goku and Gohan leaving Pan's training largely in her Grandpa Hercule's hands after Goku started training Uub. But Vegeta phrased his disapproval along the lines of 'If she wanted to fight she should be trained properly, not by the likes of that moron Hercule Satan.' Bra had taken that to mean that he didn't care if she trained or not, as long as she didn't develop delusional notions about her prowess. She wondered if maybe she should have done something to dispel his beliefs about her fragility a long time ago.

Goten struggled through his routines for another half-hour then abruptly ascended to Super Saiyan.

"Power down and get back to work," Vegeta ordered.

"I've taken enough punishment because you made your daughter cry," Goten declared stubbornly.

"I don't have a problem with knocking your teeth out for mouthing off," Vegeta warned, his voice low and dangerous.

"Sometimes you're exactly like my dad, and not in a good way," Goten exclaimed in exasperation. "Neither of you ever talk! Dad, for all his love of fighting, would just leave over a disagreement. And you knew my dad, once he was out the door who knew what could happen. It could be years before we'd see him again. Chances were he'd have saved the Universe or at least a world while he was gone. Bringing up whatever disagreement he'd run away from would just be petty so nothing ever changed. And you're almost as bad, except you lock yourself in the GR or act scary until no one short of Auntie Bulma has the nerve to try to make you finish a conversation!"

"Are you done brat?" Vegeta asked. His tone clearly implied he thought Goten was engaging in a childish tantrum.

"No. Bra didn't do anything Pan hadn't already done-" Goten began.

"Pan is not my daughter," Vegeta interrupted. "I was not on that ship. They didn't go to the heart of the old Cold Empire. And yet they still managed to bring that abomination Baby home with them."

"Well you're treating Bra like we treated Pan and Dad _while _we were infected by Baby. What's your excuse?" Goten demanded. "You told her you didn't want to admit to being her father."

Vegeta looked startled. He growled something under his breath that had the sound of a curse and strode out of the room without another word.

He rapped sharply on Bra's door. A moment later she opened the door.

"The reason you're not to advertise our relationship is that we will be traveling within the former Cold Empire," Vegeta explained abruptly. "You know about my past, this is where it happened. Here there are many who would kill you for being Saiyan. Even if you manage to argue that your birth occurred well after the last purge, you would still be killed for being my daughter, and they would believe themselves fully justified in doing so. My past is not something I will allow you to suffer for."

"You aren't mad at me?" Bra asked timidly.

"Hell no, I'm furious you're here," Vegeta stated. "But I should differentiate between your punishment and rules meant to keep you breathing while you're here."

Tentatively Bra hugged her father. "Sorry I worry you, Daddy."

Vegeta sighed, for a moment he allowed his hand to rest on her back. Then he stepped away. "You're still grounded," he stated.

"Yes Daddy," Bra replied, reasonably certain that she would be un-grounded within a week or two at most. Hopefully before they had to restock. Her whole reason for coming was to meet boys less pathetic than the ones on Earth. That wouldn't happen if she were stuck on the ship for the whole trip.

* * *

Several mornings later Bra shuffled into the galley, head down, shoulders bowed, a picture of dejection. Then she noticed that Goten was the only other person present. "Oh, it's just you," she said. A look of annoyance replaced her earlier appearance of shear misery.

"Yep, just me," Goten replied as he rolled his eyes. "No point in looking pathetic, I'm not the one that grounded you. Besides, that won't work. Trunks and I used to try it all the time, long before you were born, it doesn't work on Vegeta."

Bra smirked. "Maybe not for you or Trunks-niisan," she replied smugly.

Goten shook his head and rolled his eyes.

"It's so boring stuck in that little room all the time," Bra pouted. "Dad's being such a jerk."

Goten shrugged. "The whole ship isn't that much bigger. Or more interesting. Vegeta and I just train all day."

"I know, I'm actually doing some training myself." Bra grinned. "Concession number one: I can use the lounge for training. It's got the best compromise between space and gravity for me. Also I figured if I can show Dad that I can take care of myself he might be less inclined to lock me up for my own good."

"So you're no worse off than your dad or I," Goten replied. "It'll be another two weeks before we hit the trade route and a week after that before we get to the planet where Vegeta says we should refuel."

"So I've got three weeks to get to Dad before I miss anything," Bra declared.

"Good luck with that," Goten replied as he collected up his dishes.

"Stay and talk to me," Bra ordered. "I'm so bored! I haven't seen my friends or a mall in forever!"

"No one made you come," Goten pointed out as he left.

Bra stuck her tongue out at his back.

* * *

Goten stepped out of the ship, glanced around at the planet Vegeta had chosen for their first refueling stop and felt every bit of excitement and anticipation about visiting an alien world wither and die.

The air stuck in his throat, thick with generations of pollution. Ramshackle, grimy grey buildings stabbed up at an equally grey sky. The planet's dim red sun was looming threateningly over the horizon, smoldering through the haze rather than shining. There was nothing green or growing anywhere. Even the planet's inhabitants gave little impression of life.

While Goten had stood at the head of the loading ramp, stunned by the oppressive atmosphere of the planetary-waystation Vegeta strode down the ramp. He glared commandingly at the planet's inhabitants. "Which of you scum is the Dock Master?" he demanded.

A being with dusty yellowed skin and cold grey eyes slowly unfolded it's lankly frame. The being peered down at Vegeta. "What'd you want?"

"What are your fees for three hours docking, refueling and replacement of the ship's air and water?"

"Takes at least five hours for that," the Dock Master said lethargically.

"Hn, so your people are incompetent, lazy or both," Vegeta replied. "I trust your prices reflect your insufficiencies."

The Dock Master took a step nearer, trying to use his much greater height to intimidate. Vegeta tipped his head back slightly and laughed. Goten shivered at the sound. One of the other aliens, an older being if Goten judged by the wrinkles lining it's face, caught the Dock Master's elbow and whispered something. The Dock Master's posture caved in on itself, he took several steps back. "50 GCU's, unless you think the price too exorbitant Vegeta-sama," he offered.

"Acceptable," Vegeta stated. He collected Goten with a glance and they headed deeper into the port city, searching for supplies.

"They recognized you," Goten said.

"Their elders do," Vegeta replied. "We're well within the former Cold Empire. Frieza required me to collect tithes from worlds like this one." Vegeta's expression twisted with distaste. "It amused him to order me to run menial errands."

Goten bit his tongue before he could say anything about how that sounded better than what he and Trunks had occasionally speculated. Trunks had learned about his father's past a few months after Buu's defeat and reformation. Goten noticed the way most of the Z-Fighters were on edge around Vegeta shortly after he started middle school. When Gohan refused to explain it, he'd asked Vegeta and gotten his answer. From what he and Trunks had been told they'd concluded Vegeta had spent every waking moment killing people and blowing up planets for the entire time he'd been forced to serve Frieza. Compared to what they'd imagined 'menial errands' didn't sound so bad, even if Goten could guess that Vegeta had probably accomplished 'errands' like tithe collection through intimidation and threats if not through outright violence.

It explained the looks that followed them as they walked through the market place. Word that Vegeta was back on the planet traveled faster than they did.

Goten shivered. After Baby he'd thought he'd known what it was like to be hated. But in the end Baby was just a relic, the last remains of a people who'd fallen so far that they made hate their only legacy. Whatever the real, objective truth about the Saiyan-Tuffle War, how the Tuffles had reacted to their defeat was wrong. Whatever had been done to them they had no right to make the Earth collateral damage in a war that had ended generations ago. Even Vegeta was completely innocent of whatever crimes might have been committed against the Tuffles by the simple expedient of having not been born until after that war had ended. The Tuffles had long since given up any claims to righteousness that they might have once had.

But these people... They watched Vegeta with sullen, fearful hatred. They hated him because of things he'd done, because of what Vegeta had been the last time he'd come here. Their hate spilled over to Goten because he was with Vegeta.

"They won't do anything," Vegeta stated. "Not this time, not here."

"They're too scared of you," Goten said with a grimace. "Everyone can't be this scared of you."

"There are always a few morons," Vegeta remarked with a smirk.

Goten gave Vegeta a startled glance. During his training Vegeta had frequently warned against over-confidence.

//Don't _look _like an idiot.//

Goten quickly erased the surprise from his expression.

//They will attack, later. Don't encourage them.//

Goten frowned in concentration as he tried to make sense of Vegeta's mental voice. Being only half-Saiyan and not as naturally sensitive to slight variations in ki, Goten was effectively 'hard of hearing' when it came to the non-verbal Saiyan language.

//They will attack, but not here. Not yet. Act confident/dangerous.//

The shop-keepers met them with sullen glares but provided them with the supplies they required.

Goten was relieved when they were finally done and free to go back to their ship and shut the door on all the hatred simmering on the planet.

Vegeta sat the crate of supplies he w carrying down. "When they eventually gather their nerve you won't get involved," he ordered.

"What?" Goten exclaimed.

"We will not bring this back to the Earth with us," Vegeta stated. "I will not allow it."

"How?" Goten demanded. "Dad couldn't."

"Kakarrot did not grow up here." Vegeta shrugged, "And hating him offers little satisfaction."

Goten winced at the reminder of Vegeta's years of animosity toward his father.

Vegeta rolled his eyes. "Kakarrot was incredibly stubborn. He would not answer hate with hate. Eventually one must either give up on it or go mad to avoid recognizing the pointlessness of it."

"The Saiyans were the fist of the Cold Empire for generations. The Colds wrung every drop of value out of the planets under their sway. They left burned-out hulks like the way-station, along with the moving detritus you saw living there, behind by the hundreds." Vegeta looked through Goten. "Vengeance can keep one alive when all else fails. It can be food, water and air, but one can't walk away from it."

"For those who hate the Saiyan race fighting Kakarrot, Son Goku, could only confront them with evidence that their time for vengeance had come and gone. No satisfaction, no resolution. You don't just walk away from the path of vengeance. Son Goku couldn't end it, because he was never a part of it. I am Vegeta no Ouji, Prince of all Saiyans. I have offered trial by combat before," he offered Goten a strained, false grin. "It was always an interesting training exercise. Not completely different from the games we play with Capsule Corp Security."

Goten looked slightly ill. "Except for the part where they're all determined to kill you."

"And the debriefings afterwards were notably shorter," Vegeta remarked.

"That's not funny," Goten said.

"You will not get involved," Vegeta repeated. "The rules here are different and your father would never forgive me for teaching them to you. But anything that comes up here will be resolved here. I won't have this following us back to the Earth."


End file.
